Texas State University’s Billy Fields, a professor in the Department of Political Science, has received a Lafitte Greenway Founding Visionary award for his work helping to plan and build the Lafitte Greenway in New Orleans.

Fields was one of 10 urban planners, community members and academics honored by the Friends of the Lafitte Greenway, a group established in 2006 in New Orleans to re-imagine the city’s landscape following Hurricane Katrina. The Lafitte Greenway is a green space in the heart of New Orleans with a 2.6-mile bicycle and pedestrian trail connecting surrounding neighborhoods.

“This work speaks to long-term engagement with the community that has stretched over 10 years,” Fields said. “It was a distinct honor to represent Texas State at the ceremony.”

In addition to teaching at Texas State, Fields is the director of the Center of Urban and Public Affairs at the University of New Orleans, where he received his Ph.D.